The effect of therapeutic touch on sleep quality and fatigue in menopausal women

Background and aims:
The management of well-known and common complaints such as insomnia and fatigue experienced in the menopausal period has the potential to affect many aspects of life in women during this period positively. This research was carried out to determine the effect of therapeutic touch on sleep quality and fatigue in menopausal women.

Methods:
This randomized controlled experimental study was conducted with 48 (24 in the intervention group and 24 in the control group) women who sought treatment in the gynecological outpatient clinic of a public hospital. According to the study procedure, while the intervention group received therapeutic touch, the control group received SHAM therapeutic touch for 10 min a day for five consecutive days. Data were collected through the Personal Information Form, the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, and the Piper Fatigue Scale.

Results:
The median post-test total sleep quality score was significantly lower in the intervention group than in the control group (p=0.010). However, the mean total fatigue scores did not differ significantly between the groups (p=0.917).

Conclusions:
The results of this study showed that therapeutic touch was effective in improving sleep quality, but it did not affect fatigue in menopausal women.

Keywords: Fatigue; Menopause; Sleep; Therapeutic touch; Women.

PMID: 37640590 DOI: 10.1016/j.explore.2023.08.007